What is perfect joy? Hhhhmmmmmm………where have we heard that before? My dear brothers and sisters, may the Lord give you peace and help you find perfect joy! I just watched what is the personification of perfect joy. When I wake up in the mornings, I usually check my cell phone first thing to make sure I catch any messages that came during the night. And I’ll admit, I usually take a peek at ‘what’s happenin’’ on Facebook.
I was drawn to a video from one of those “_______________’s Got Talent” shows. (Fill in the country – there are quite a few countries with their own version of this show.) The video opened with a young man walking on stage and approaching the mic. His face radiated such joy that I found it impossible to click on the next post without watching. When I say this young man walked on stage, believe me, it was excruciating to watch. He was very physically handicapped. He was able to walk, but his legs were obviously crippled and he did not have complete hands and arms. I’m sure that isn’t the politically correct way to say that but I’m not sure what is the right thing to call his condition.
After the moderator asked his name (Emmanuel) he also asked this young man who was with him backstage. If there could be more joy radiating from him, it happened when he said his Mom and brother were with him. The camera panned over to the Mom and another young man standing with her. He was equally as handsome as his brother and equally crippled by not having complete limbs.
The moderator then asked Emmanuel how old he is and the answer was “Well, sir, I don’t rightly know”. There was complete silence in the audience and lots of looks of confusion. How could you not know how old you are? Emmanuel went on to explain that he and his brother were found in war torn Iraq and taken to an orphanage. There were no papers and certainly no birth certificates in the box with the two babies.
There wasn’t a lot of explanation on how it came about that his Mom visited the orphanage and adopted the brothers, but that is what happened. She is Australian and perhaps was in Iraq serving in her country’s military as a soldier or maybe a nurse. However she arrived at the orphanage was undoubtedly orchestrated by God Himself and she chose to be the mother of these two exceptional boys. They adore her and she couldn’t love them any more if she tried. She has raised two wonderful boys and guided them to be beautiful (inside and out) young men.
Now, here stood Emmanuel on the stage barely able to contain his joy. The moderator asked what Emmanuel was going to sing and he simply said “Imagine”. The moderator put his head down and uttered ‘Oh man!’ knowing it would be very emotional watching this young man, who was thrown away at birth, singing these lyrics.
What a magnificent voice! And of course, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. How poignant to see this person standing there singing the words:
You may say I’m a dreamer,
But I’m not the only one
I hope some day you’ll join us
And the world will be as one
A woman who chose to be a mother to sons who would have a difficult life at best. Two sons who chose to squeeze every ounce of joy out of every day. What a lesson, what an example. So the next time you think you have had a bad day, think of Emmanuel and his brother and the joy they found in just being. And then reflect on the last line of Imagine…….I hope some day you’ll join us. And the world will be as one.
Asking God to bless this month of May for you,
kate
